Oxford Methodist Robert Kirkham

Tyerman'a book on the Oxford Mthodists begins with Robert Kirkham thus

THE FIRST OF THE OXFORD METHODISTS

Robert Kirkham

WESLEY writes: — "In November, 1729, four young gentlemen of Oxford, — Mr. John Wesley, Fellow of 1735 Lincoln College; Mr. Charles Wesley, Student of Christ Church; Mr. Morgan, Commoner of Christ Church; and Mr. Kirkham, of Merton College, — began to spend some evenings in a week together in reading, chiefly, the Greek Testament."'

These were the first Oxford Methodists; and, though there is little to be said of Morgan, and still less of Kirkham, they must not be passed in silence. Methodism may be traced to their associating with the two Wesleys, to read the Greek Testament, in 1729.

Robert Kirkham was the son of the Rev. Lionel Kirkham, a clergyman resident at Stanton, in Gloucestershire. The family consisted of Robert and at least two sisters, Sarah and Betty.

Sarah was the intimate friend of Mary Granville, afterwards Mrs. Delany, a woman of great accomplishments, who moved in the highest society and, for more than fifty years, was honoured with the friendship and confidence of King George III. and his Queen Charlotte. Sarah Kirkham was born in 1699; and, in 1725, was married to the Rev. John Capon, or, as the name is sometimes spelt, Chapone. She was a woman of great intellect and of an intensely warm and generous nature. "Sally," wrote Mary Granville, in 1737, then Mrs. Pendarves, "would shine in an assembly composed of Tullys, Homers, and Miltons: at Gloucester, she is like a diamond set in jet, — their dulness makes her brightness brighter." (Autogiography of Mrs Delany). Mrs. Chapone died in 1764.

Her sister Betsy was probably the first of Wesley's sweet- hearts. As early as February 2, 1726, Robert Kirkham, writing, from home, to his "Dear Jacke," at "Lincoln College, Oxford, by the Worcester carrier," says, — " Your most deserving, queer character, your personal accomplishments, your noble endowments of mind, your little and handsome person, and your most obhging and desirable conversation, — have often been the pleasing subject of our discourse. Often have you been in the thoughts of M.B." [Miss Betsy ?] " which I have curiously observed, when with her alone, by her inward smiles and sighs, and by her abrupt expressions concerning you. Shall this suffice? I caught her this morning in an humble and devout posture on her knees. I must conclude; and subscribe myself your most affectionate friend, and brother I wish I miglit write,

"Robert Kirkham."

Twelve months after this, Wesley's sister Martha wrote to him as follows: — 

"When I knew that you were just returned from Worcestershire, where, I suppose, you saw your Varenese" [the pet name of Betsy Kirkham], "I then ceased to wonder at your silence; for the sight of such a woman might well make you forget me. I really have myself a vast respect for her, as I must necessarily have for one that is so dear to you."

For more than three years subsequent to this, Wesley kept up a correspondence with Kirkham's sister, and spoke of her in the tenderest terms. In 1731, their friendship was interrupted. Why?' Did the young lady's father interfere? Or did she herself prefer another? These are questions which it is almost impossible to answer; but it is a significant fact that, though the Kirkham family seems to have consisted of only one son and two daughters, one of those daughters died about twelve months afterwards; she, at the time of her death, bearing the name of Mrs. Wilson. Hence the following extract from a letter, written by Mrs. Pendarves, and dated "Killala, June 28th, 1732."

"Poor Mrs. Wilson! I am sorry for the shock her death must have given Sally" [Mrs. Chapone] "whose tenderness must sometimes take place of her wisdom; but I hope when she considers the great advantage to her sister, in all probability will receive by the exchange she has lately made, that she will be reconciled to the loss of a sister that has given her more woe than happiness. Pray, has Mrs Wilson left any children?"

Was Mrs. Wilson the quondam Betsy Kirkham? It is probable she was; for, though Mrs. Pendarves and Mrs. Chapone continued to be the warmest friends for thirty-two years after this, there is not, in the voluminous correspondence of the former, the least allusion to Betsy.

Perhaps these notices of Robert Kirkham's sisters are hardly relevant; but it must be borne in mind that Kirkham was one of Wesley's warmest friends, and that he wished to have Wesley for a brother.

As already intimated, of Robert Kirkham himself next to nothing has been published. In a letter to his mother, dated February 28, 1730, three months after the first Methodist meeting in Oxford, Wesley wrote : —

"I have another piece of news to acquaint you with, which, as it is more strange, will, I hope, be equally agreeable. A little while ago. Bob Kirkham took a fancy into his head, that he would lose no more time and waste no more money; in pursuance of which, he first resolved to breakfast no longer on tea; next, to drink no more ale in an evening, or, however, but to quench his thirst; then to read Greek or Latin from prayers in the morning till noon, and from dinner till five at night. And how much may one imagine he executed of these resolutions? Why, he has left off tea, struck off his drinking acquaintances to a man, given the hours above specified to the Greek Testament and Hugo Grotius, and spent the evenings either by himself or with my brother and me."

This was a brave act. For a frank, frivolous, jovial young fellow like Robert Kirkam, who, in a letter to Wesley, four years before, had told his friend of his revelling over a dish of calves' head and bacon, and a newly-tapped barrel of excellent cider, now to resolve to live a life like that which Wesley mentions, and to have firmness enough to fulfil his resolution, was no ordinary fact, and indicated a great change in the light-hearted young collegian. Was not this the very commencement of the Methodist organization."

In 1731, Kirkham took his leave of the Oxford brotherhood, to become his uncle's curate. Where did he live after this? How did he live? When did he die? These are questions which we cannot answer. We have tried to obtain information concerning his subsequent career, but have failed.

Oxford Methodist Thomas Broughton 1712-1777

Tyerman wrote about Broughton, the son of another Thomas Broughton, said to have been at one time commissioner of excise at Edinburgh, He was born in Oxford. When he matriculated at University College, Oxford, on 13 December 1731, his father was described as of "Carfax in Oxford". He was elected Petreian fellow at Exeter College on 30 June 1733, and became full fellow on 14 July 1734, taking his BA on 22 March 1737. Soon after becoming an undergraduate he joined the little band of young men known as 'Methodists' and remained a sympathiser with the Wesleys for several years, until differences of opinion on the Moravian doctrines led to their separation.

Broughton's first clerical duty was at Cowley, near Uxbridge, and he was curate at the Tower of London in 1736. Through Whitefield's influence he obtained the lectureship at St Helen's Bishopsgate, but as some of the parishioners objected to Whitefield's preaching from its pulpit, he withdrew from the post. He visited the prisoners in Newgate Prison and was indefatigable in doing good.

In 1741 he was appointed lecturer at Allhallows, Lombard Street, and two years later was elected secretary to the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, a position which he retained until his death. His only other preferment was the living of Wotton in Surrey, which he held 1752-1777. He died at the society's house in Hatton Garden, London, 21 December 1777. He held his fellowship at Exeter College until July 1741. In 1742 he married Miss Capel, by whom he had 15 children, five of whom died young. A portrait of Broughton hangs in the board-room of the SPCK.

Works

Two outspoken sermons of his attained great popularity: The Christian Soldier, or the Duties of a Religious Life recommended to the Army, which was preached in 1737, printed in 1738, and reached its twelfth edition in 1818, a Welsh translation having appeared in 1797; and A Serious and Affectionate Warning to Servants, occasioned by the brutal murder of a mistress by her male servant aged only 19, issued in 1746, ninth edition 1818.

Oxford Methodist James Hervey 1714-1758

Tyerman wrote about James Hervey (26 February 1714–25 December 1758). He was an English clergyman and writer. He was born in Hardingstone, near Northampton and educated at Northampton grammar school and Lincoln College, Oxford, where he was exposed to John Wesley and the Oxford Methodists. He adopted a Calvinistic creed and remained in the Anglican Church. He was known for his dedicated work as a parish priest and his various writings.

Having taken orders in 1737, he held several curacies, and in 1752 succeeded his father in the family livings of Weston Favell and Collingtree. He was never robust in health but was a good parish priest and a zealous writer.

Works

His style is often bombastic but he displays a rare appreciation of natural beauty and his simple piety made him many friends. His earliest work, Meditations and Contemplations, said to have been modelled on Robert Boyle's Occasional Reflexions on various Subjects, within 14 years passed through as many editions.

Theron and Aspasio, or a series of Letters upon the most important and interesting Subjects, which appeared in 1755, and was equally well received, called forth some adverse criticism even from Calvinists, on account of tendencies which were considered to lead to antinomianism, and was strongly objected to by Wesley in his Preservative against unsettled Notions in Religion. Besides carrying into England the theological disputes to which the Marrow of Modern Divinity had given rise in Scotland, it also led to what is known as the Sandemanian controversy as to the nature of saving faith.

A new and complete edition of his Works, with a memoir, appeared in 1797.

See also Collection of the Letters of James Hervey, to which is prefixed an account of his Life and Death, by Thomas Birch (1760).

Influence

Hervey had a lasting impact on art through Blake, an admirer of his. Blake painted Epitome of James Hervey's Meditations among the Tombs between 1820 and 1825. Hervey is also mentioned in Blake's work as one of the holy guards to the 'four-fold gate', and his influence on Blake's poem The Tyger has also been noted.

In addition to this, the sombre and sweeping tone of his Meditations Among The Tombs (for example, "the dreadful pleasure inspired by gazing at fallen monuments and mouldering tombs") has led to his being placed amongst the 18th century "Graveyard School" of poets, rendering his work an important influence on Horace Walpole's "The Castle of Otranto" of 1764 and consequently, the entire genre of Gothic literature and the later Romanticism which the genre fuelled.

Oxford Methodist John Gambold 1711-1771

 Tyerman wrote aboutJohn Gambold (10 April 1711–13 September 1771), bishop of the Unitas Fratrum or Moravian church. He was born in Puncheston, Pembrokeshire, and was the son of William Gambold, an Anglican clergyman. He received his early education at home and in 1726 became a servitor at Christ Church, Oxford. He enjoyed poetry and drama. His father's death in 1728 affected him and for a couple of years he abandoned himself to religious melancholy. In March 1730 he became friends with Charles Wesley, who had entered at Christ Church the same year. Charles brought him under the influence of John Wesley, and he joined the "Holy Club" a forerunner to the Methodist church. Gambold wrote an account of this time in the club in 1736, which is one of the most important primary sources.

He was influenced by the Wesley brothers, but preferred quietism to evangelistic activity preferring the study of the earlier Greek Fathers, and was captivated by their mysticism.

Gambold became an Anglican priest, being ordained in September 1733 by John Potter, Bishop of Oxford. In 1735 he became vicar of Stanton Harcourt, Oxfordshire. For about two years (1736–1738) Keziah Wesley, a sister of the Wesley brothers, was a member of his household.

Gambold attended to the duties of his small parish but spent much time in contemplation. When John Wesley returned from Georgia in 1738 he introduced Gambold to the Moravian missionary, Peter Boehler, and Gambold acted as Boehler's interpreter when he was giving lectures at Oxford. In 1739 he became influenced by a meeting with Count Zinzendorf, later translating Zinzendorf's German addresses.

His religious musings found expression in a dramatic piece, the most important of his poems, written in 1740. In December 1740 he had a visit from his younger brother, who gave him an account of the London Moravians; he was attracted by the homely warmth of their fellowship. Accompanying his brother to London (1741) he came under the influence of Philip Henry Molther.

Gambold broke with Wesley on 2 July 1741. He preached before the University of Oxford on 27 December 1741, a sermon of a rather high church tinge. In October 1742 he resigned his living, having been for some little time with the Moravians in London. He was admitted a member of their society in November, while teacher in a boarding-school at Broadoaks, Essex. On 14 May 1743 he married Elizabeth Walker (7 December 1719–13 November 1803), a daughter of Joseph Walker of Littletown in the West Riding of Yorkshire, and became master at a school at Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire.

In November 1744 he returned to London and became a stated preacher at Fetter Lane. In December 1745 Wesley found him unwilling to renew their former intercourse; they met again in 1763, but Gambold was still shy, yet Wesley spoke of him to the last (1770) as one of the most "sensible men in England". Gambold took part, in March 1747, in a synod of the brethren at Herrnhaag in the Rhine provinces. In 1749 he addressed a letter to Zinzendorf, proposing the formation of an "Anglican tropus", a plan for the admission, as Moravian brethren, of persons who should still remain members of the Church of England. Gambold was willing to concede that an Anglican prelate should exercise some supervision in Moravian affairs and assist at their ordinations; also that the common prayer-book should be adopted in their assemblies. The latter provision was not carried out; but, at a synod in London in September 1749, Thomas Wilson, Bishop of Sodor and Man, was chosen "antistes" of the "reformed tropus" (with permission to employ his son as substitute).

In 1753 the Moravian community lost by secession Benjamin Ingham and his following. Gambold exerted himself to repair the loss. At a synod held at Lindsey House, Chelsea, he was consecrated a 'chorepiscopus' in November 1754 by Bishops Johannes de Watteville, John Nitschmann and David Nitschmann the younger. Till 1768 his home was in London but his duties often took him on his travels. He had much to do with the reorganisation of Moravianism at the synod of Marienborn in July and August 1764, four years after Zinzendorf's death. In 1765 he founded the community at Cootehill, Co. Cavan. His health failed in 1768, owing to a "dropsical asthma" and he retired in the autumn to Haverfordwest. There he continued his ministrations until five days before his death, which occurred on 13 September 1771. He left a son and daughter. His portrait was painted by Abraham Louis Brandt, a Moravian minister; from this a mezzotint and a small engraving have been made.

Gambold never had an enemy but he made few friends. The hesitations of his career are in part to be explained by the underlying scepticism of his intellectual temperament, from which he found refuge in an anxious and reclusive piety. This appears in his poems, eg "The Mystery of Life", his epitaph for himself, in which occurs the line, "He suffered human life—and died"; and still more in his letters. His very remarkable "Letter to a Studious Young Lady" (1737) contains a curious argument to show that any absorbing pursuits will elevate the mind equally well. In an unpublished letter (15 April 1740) to Wesley he writes: "I hang upon the Gospel by a mere thread, this small unaccountable inclination towards Christ." He draws his own picture in the character of Claudius, the Roman soldier of his drama. His verse is often striking, and never conventional; many of his hymns have become widely known.

Works

Self-published

Christianity, Tidings of Joy, &c., Oxford [1741], 8vo (university sermon).

Ἡ καινὴ διαθήκη, &c., Oxford, 1742, 12mo (Mill's text, Bengel's divisions; Gambold's name does not appear).

Maxims ... of Count Zinzendorf, &c., 1751, 8vo.

A Modest Plea, &c., 1754, 8vo.

A Collection of Hymns, &c., 1754, 8vo, 2 vols. (to this collection, edited by Gambold, he contributed 11 translations and 28 original hymns; he had previously contributed to collections of Moravian hymns, printed in 1748, 1749, and 1752; a hymn-book for children is said to have been printed by his own hand at Lindsey House).

The Reasonableness and Extent of Religious Reverence, &c., 1756, 8vo.

A Short Summary of Christian Doctrine, &c., 1765, 12mo; 2nd edit. 1767, 12mo (catechism, in which the answers are entirely in the language of the Book of Common Prayer).

The Martyrdom of St Ignatius, &c., 1773, 8vo (written 1740; edited by Benjamin La Trobe).

Collaborative

Assisted in editing the Acta Fratrum Unitatis in Anglia, &c., 1749;

Edited an edition of Lord Bacon's Works, 1765, 5 vols.

Revised the translation of Cranz's History of Greenland, 1767, 2 vols.,

Contributed prefaces, &c., to many Moravian publications from 1752 onward.

He is said to have translated Rhys Prichard's Divine Poems from Welsh into English. His works were first published at Bath in 1789, with anonymous Life by Benjamin La Trobe. Thomas Erskine of Linlathen re-edited them, Glasgow, 1822; 2nd edit. 1823.

His Poetical Works (not including the hymns) were published 1816, (preface dated "Darlington, 17 April").

Oxford Methodist Benjamin Ingham 1712-1772

Tyerman wrote about Benjamin Ingham (11 June 1712 [OS]–1772) an English cleric who was the founder of the Moravian Church in England as well as his own Inghamite societies.

Born and raised in the West Riding of Yorkshire, he earned a BA from Oxford and was ordained aged 23. Methodist connections from Oxford led to a colonial mission in America where he developed a keen interest in the Moravian church. Following a 1738 visit to Germany for greater exposure to the Moravian faith, he returned to preach in Yorkshire for the next four years. During this time he built up a following of more societies than he could manage. He relinquished control of his societies to the Moravian Brethren in 1742. His Moravian transformation occurred the year following his marriage. The Moravians, or Unitas Fratrum, were recognised by the British Crown in 1749 thereby creating the Moravian Church in England. While Ingham’s bond with his brethren strengthened, it was a relationship that was to evolve. By the early 1750s he found his views differing from the Oxford Methodists. When the viewpoints of the Moravian elders clashed with those of the Church of England, Ingham used the 1753 scandal to distance himself fromthem and re-establish his own Inghamite societies. Still insecure as an independent church, Ingham turned to Sandemanianism during the final years of his life as a viable way forward for his followers. While he shared many Sandemanian views he chose independence instead. The majority of his societies splintered and joined with other denominations - Methodists, Sandemanians and Congregationalists. He died at Aberford near Leeds in 1772, four years after his wife. He left his fortune to his nephew Joseph Whitaker.

Born in Ossett, Yorkshire, on 11 June 1712, his father, William, was a descendant of clergy ejected from the Church of England in 1662. He attended Batley Grammar School and Queen's College, Oxford, where he completed his BA in 1734. He was ordained the following year by the Bishop of Oxford, Dr. John Potter. At Oxford, Ingham made the acquaintance of the Wesley brothers and Whitefield, all of whom had joined the society of Methodists at Oxford sometimes called the Holy Club.

On 9 June 1732, King George II enacted a corporate charter authorising James Oglethorpe to colonise the Province of Georgia. Oglethorpe planted his original colony near an Indian village along the banks of the Savannah River. The city that later formed here took on the name of the river that flowed past. Tomochichi, a Yamacraw chief, together with John and Mary Musgrove (outpost traders), were instrumental to Oglethorpe as mediators and interpreters in the establishment of peaceful relations between the original European settlers in Georgia and the Lower Creek people.

Word travelled quickly throughout Europe that both land and English citizenship were available in Georgia. Count Nicolous Ludwig von Zinzendorf arranged for August Gottlieb Spangenberg to lead a party of 10 Moravians to the province in January 1736, just ahead of Oglethorpe’s return. Scottish Highlanders sailed from Inverness in October, arriving in January 1736 and establishing their town of New Inverness. Rev. John McLeod was their minister. After a four-month stay in England, Tomochichi's Creek party returned to Georgia with the first group of 56 Salzburgers.

During his return to Georgia, Oglethorpe’s party of 231 persons set sail from Gravesend in December. Among the passengers were the Wesleys, Ingham and Charles Delamotte and 26 Moravians led by their bishop, David Nitschman plus a second group of Salzburgers headed by Baron Philip George Friederich von Reck. There were many other nationalities represented in this group of immigrants. These colonists arrived off Savannah on 8 February 1736 [OS]

During the first months ashore, this second wave of colonists established fortifications and dwellings among and around the various settlements as they adjusted to their Georgian setting. The community leaders incessantly communicated with one another discussing future plans. The Moravian Brethren, at the inclination of Oglethorpe, built a schoolhouse near Tomochichi’s village to teach reading and writing to the Creek children. The site was named Irene, and was built over the grave of an earlier chief. John Töltschig led five other Moravians to the island location and started the construction on 13 August 1736 [NS]. The building had three rooms: one for Ingham, one for Peter Rose and his wife and the third a schoolroom for the children. The hut was finished the next month allowing the mission to proceed. This arrangement initially worked well for all parties. Ingham acted as liaison between the main settlement in Savannah and this school, where he and the Roses instructed the children.

The Indian village went on the warpath, and Ingham sailed to England, via Pennsylvania on 9 March 1737 [NS]. He returned to London to rally support for the colony. In his possession were letters from Spangenberg to the Trustees of the Province of Georgia. John Wesley followed Ingham to London some months later. On Wesley’s return, the two journeyed with John Töltschig to Marienborn, home of Zinzendorf, and Herrnhut for greater exposure to Moravian Christianity. Wesley was replaced by George Whitefield as Oglethorpe’s Chaplain to Georgia.

James Hutton, a London bookseller, made the acquaintance with the Wesleys during their Oxford schooling. While sending Wesley off on his Georgian mission, Hutton was transformed by the experience he had on board with the Moravian Brethren. Hutton recorded the date in his memoirs as Tuesday, 14 October 1735 [OS]. So moved was he by this experience with them that he formed a society which met weekly in his home to pray. They concluded each meeting with a reading of the latest Wesley correspondence describing the ongoing mission with the Moravian Brethren. In this way they practiced until John Wesley’s return to England.

It was during this period that another young Moravian missionary, Peter Boehler, en route to America, was invited to one of these meetings at Fetter Lane. He had studied at the University of Jena and had been ordained by Zinzendorf. Boehler’s inspiring presence transformed Hutton's Society into "The Great Meeting House" which became the "First Religious Society in Fetter Lane, London". This 1738 event could be described as planting the seed of the Moravian Church in England. This gathering, or "Vestry Society", rightly considered themselves as part of the Church of England, and at times included members of the Holy Club. Boehler established the rules learned under Zinzendorf, Hutton presided, and Philip Henry Molther ministered. This society was repeatedly slandered for their "non-traditional" approach to Christianity. In response to the church doors being closed to their preaching, they shared the word in fields and on street corners with any who would listen.

The Fetter Lane Society continued to grow and looked to the Moravian connection for recognition of their achievement. Spangenberg returned to London in November 1742 to elevate the status of the society at Fetter Lane. He recognized the "First Religious Society in Fetter Lane, London" as a full congregation of Brethren and after introducing them to the rules and Officers of the German Congregation referred to them as the "London Church". He saw this congregation as the union between the Moravian Church and the Church of England whose duty was to preach the gospel. Spangenberg's words were echoed by Zinzendorf to this London Church upon his return from America in March 1743.

Ingham returned to Yorkshire from his 1738 visit to Saxony where he reestablished his ministry in the north, primarily the countryside surrounding Wakefield, Leeds and Halifax. The following summer the English clergy responded to the Methodists. Ingham, like his fellow ministers from Oxford, was forbidden to preach inside English churches, a condition that lasted some five years. These evangelists responded with open air preaching on street corners in London, and in the fields of Yorkshire to further the Gospel. Despite this opposition, Ingham strengthened his Moravian connection. Töltschig made his first visit to Yorkshire in 1739. Boehler followed in 1741 upon his return from America. The Fetter Lane society served as the nerve centre for Methodist communications throughout England. As Wesleys' theological views shifted away from those of the United Brethren, the chapel at Fetter Lane was turned over to them.

Ingham made the lasting acquaintance of Lady Margaret Hastings on his return to Yorkshire. They were married on 12 November 1741. Following this union, he relocated his residence to Aberford. Beyond his personal life, Ingham cultivated tremendous growth from among his societies. He turned to Spangenberg, then in London, for help relinquishing personal control. Spangenberg immediately called for a pilgrimage. These settlers were organized along the lines of German communities in Herrnhut. In addition to Spangenberg, the list of Moravians that answered this call to Yorkshire included Töltschig, Hutton and many others. This transfer of power strengthened the bond of trust between the Moravians and those English in communion with them on 30 July 1742.

Beyond Ingham’s societal reorganisation, the Brethren needed land to farm. Zinzendorf’s 1743 visit to Yorkshire strengthened the fraternal bond with Ingham, who reciprocated by attending the Synod in Vogtland later that year with his wife. The decision to purchase the property for the Fulneck pilgrim settlement was made at this time. Ingham purchased the Fallneck (Fallen Oak) Estate in 1744 as a gift to the Brethren. The foundation of Grace Hall, within the Fulneck settlement, was laid on 10 May 1746 with Töltschig leading the congregation in the ceremony. This building was followed by the girls' school in October 1749 and the boys' school in 1753.

While the Fulneck settlement developed, the United Brethren Church continued to press for recognition from Great Britain in order to safeguard their missionaries from military service in the UK and overseas. Ingham, Hutton and Bell aided this cause when they attained an audience with the King to demonstrate the loyalty of the United Brethren on 27 April 1744. Parliament, with the firm backing of the Church of England, enacted legislation in 1749 championed by Oglethorpe that recognised the "ancient Protestant Episcopal church" of these Moravians as being the same as their own.

By 1753 the leading Methodist personalities had distanced their theological views from those of the United Brethren. That same year, Zinzendorf’s Church suffered a credit crisis which severely strained what was left of those underlying friendships. This rift coincided with the end of Oglethorpe’s Charter to Georgia. Among the key issues during the transformation to a Crown colony were military service and slavery, both of which the Moravian Brethren opposed. Most of their settlements in Georgia had long since relocated to Pennsylvania. In response to this unfortunate situation, Ingham distanced himself and his societies from both the Moravian Church and the Church of England. He softened his initial demand for full payment of the land surrounding Grace Hall, to require only an annual rent for some 500 years. His followers were referred to as Inghamites. Ingham considered reunification for his societies with his associates from Oxford, the Wesley brothers, in 1755, but was unable to get John Wesley’s full support. Later that year in Lancashire, Ingham was elected to the position of "General Overseer" of his societies with James Allen and William Batty chosen as his principal helpers. By that time, Ingham had near 80 flourishing congregations that viewed him as their head Pastor.

In 1759, Ingham read Glas’s Testimony of the king of martyrs concerning his kingdom, and Sandeman's Letters on Theron and Aspasio. Ingham, by way of correspondence with Glas and Sandeman, joined into discussion with them in an attempt to save his Inghamites through unification with congregations that most closely resembled those of the Moravian-Methodists he had established in Yorkshire. The following year, Ingham sent two of his ministers, James Allen and William Batty, on a discreet mission to Scotland to learn first-hand about Glasite practices. They formally reported to Ingham in October 1761. While their report swayed the conference decision from Methodism to Sandemanianism, they could not agree on the specifics of this transformation as Ingham intended to maintain his position as "General Overseer". The resulting split left Batty supporting Ingham, neither of whom was willing to fully convert. The formal conversion would mean confessing their faith amongst a Sandemanian (or Glasite) congregation and being accepted as members of that community. Allen returned to Scotland, converted, became an Elder, returned to Yorkshire as a missionary, and converted several Inghamite congregations to Sandemanianism. Ingham’s congregations continued to act in an independent manner. They lacked the unifying organisational structure inherent in either the Moravian or the elder-led Sandemanian congregations. In the absence of such discipline, the Inghamite societies have slowly unraveled and have nearly been overtaken by Methodism, Sandemanianism, Congregationalism and others. In 1762, Ingham was elected an elder to the Church at Tadcaster, and continued in the office of "General Overseer" until his parting.

At the age of 60, Ingham died in 1772, some four years after his wife, Lady Margaret, at Aberford. By 1863, the number of Inghamite chapels had been reduced to half a dozen. As of February 2010 there remain but two active Inghamite chapels.

Writings

Ingham wrote several hymns for inclusion with the Kendal Hymn Book published in Leeds in 1757 to which an appendix was added four years later. The 1886 edition of the Moravian Hymn book also contains two of Ingham’s works. He published A Discourse on the Faith and Hope of the Gospel in 1763 which explained his revised views on the Christian faith. This work was heavily influenced by the writings of Glas and Sandeman.

Oxford Methodist John Clayton 1709-1773

Tyerman wrote about Clayton who was an English clergyman, an early Methodist, and a Jacobite supporter.

He was the son of William Clayton, bookseller, of Manchester, and was born 9 October 1709. Educated at Manchester Grammar School, he gained the school exhibition to Brasenose College, Oxford, in 1725. In 1729 the Hulmean scholarship was awarded to him and a little later he became a college tutor. He proceeded BA 16 April 1729, MS 8 June 1732.

One of his early friends was John Byrom, his fellow-townsman. At Oxford he knew John and Charles Wesley, James Hervey, Benjamin Ingham and other pious young collegians, who formed the little society of 'Oxford Methodists'. Fasting, almsgiving and the visitation of the sick were among the main objects of the friends, and the influence of Clayton's devotional spirit and earnest churchmanship was felt in the little community.

He left Oxford in 1732, and was ordained deacon at Chester on 29 December of that year. His first cure was that of Sacred Trinity Chapel, Salford. His house became the resort of John Wesley and others of the Oxford society whenever they came to Manchester, and Wesley on several occasions preached from his pulpit. George Whitefield also delivered one of his stirring addresses in Clayton's chapel. When Wesley was contemplating his mission to Georgia, he visited Manchester to take the opinions of Clayton and Byrom. Clayton acted as chaplain to Darcy Lever, LL.D., high sheriff of Lancashire in 1736, and published the assize sermon which he preached at Lancaster in that year. On 6 March 1740 he was elected one of the chaplains of the Manchester Collegiate Church, and twenty years later (28 June 1760) was appointed a fellow there.

His high-church practices and strongly pronounced Jacobite views proved very obnoxious to the Whig party of the neighbourhood. He was attacked in a pamphlet by Thomas Percival of Royton, and subsequently by Josiah Owen, presbyterian minister of Rochdale, and John Collier, otherwise known as 'Tim Bobbin'. When the Young Pretender visited Manchester in 1745, Clayton publicly advocated his claims, and offered up prayer in the collegiate church for the deposed royal family. Afterwards Clayton had to suffer: he was obliged to conceal himself, and was suspended from his office for violating his ordination vow, and for acting as one disaffected towards the Protestant succession. He was reinstated when a general amnesty towards the adherents of the Prince was proclaimed.

In Chetham's Hospital and Library at Manchester he took considerable interest, and in 1764 was elected a feoffee of that foundation. Clayton died on 25 September 1773, aged 64, and was interred in the Derby chapel of the Manchester Collegiate Church (now cathedral). His wife was Mary, daughter of William Dawson of Manchester. She appears to have died young.

For many years Clayton ran an academy at Salford, and his pupils after his death formed themselves into a society called the Cyprianites, and at their first meeting decided to erect a monument to his memory in Manchester Cathedral. For school use he published in 1754 Anacreontis et Sapphonis Carmina, cum virorum doctorum notis et emendationibus. A library of 6000 books, collected by Clayton, was attached to this school: it was dispersed in 1773.

In 1755 he published a short volume entitled Friendly Advice to the Poor; written and published at the request of the late and present Officers of the Town of Manchester, in which he wrote about the poorer inhabitants of the town. It was replied to in the following year in a jocular and sarcastic manner in A Sequel to the Friendly Advice to the Poor of Manchester. By Joseph Stot, Cobbler. The real author was Robert Whitworth, printer and bookseller.